Was lawrence taylor an outside,or inside linebacker???

Question

olb or ilb?

Answer 1

outside.

Answer 2

He was an outside linebacker, among which there are two types:

* Strong Side

* Weak Side

Your strong side OL is usually your better pass defender/secondary blitzer.  

Your weak side OL is usually your better pass rusher of the two and has more versatile speed/athletic skills mix as a result.  A good one can really disrupt the other team's offense beyond the scope of his position because he has a lot of flexibility to "read" what is developing with the offense before the play, and set up/react accordingly.  This is why the left tackle (typically the "weak" side of a right-handed quarterback's offense, and his "blind" side) is usually the best athlete, and the highest paid among offensive linemen in the NFL.  He has to handle the defensive end speed rush, and he has to keep an eye on the OL.  (Toughest job on the offensive line - and far more critical with high percentage passing offenses of today).

In the 1950s through late 1960s, the high percentage running offenses really put the focus on the Middle Linebacker / ML / called the "Mike" in the Pros.  d**k Butkus, and others like Ray Nitschke and Tommy Nobis defined this position as a stopper.  As the offensive schemes expanded to more finesse/passing and not just power running games, expanded athletic skills like LT's were key to defensive success.

L.T. in many ways DEFINED this position, and how all have tried to play it, since his day.  He came out of North Carolina, not a big football school, with some strong stats that really accelerated toward the end of his college days, and was one of the best draft choices the NY Giants ever made.  I admired his on-the-field ability greatly, and know the position well, trying to model myself after him when I played it.